Autoware Foundation UK Gender Equality Plan (GEP)
Autoware Foundation UK Limited
Company No. 16783240 | Adopted by the Director on 20 November 2025
1. Public Document
This Gender Equality Plan (GEP) is publicly available at: https://autoware.org.uk/gep and upon request.
2. Scope
This plan applies to all areas of Autoware Foundation UK Limited, including:
- Governance and leadership
- Recruitment and contracting
- Research and innovation activities
- Professional conduct and organisational culture
- Work performed at external sites
3. Responsibilities & Resources
- Responsible Officer: Director (Stephen Taylor)
- Resources:
- Time allocated for implementation and monitoring
- External equality/gender consultant or training provider engaged as needed
4. Data Collection & Monitoring
Sex/gender will be collected and monitored for:
- staff and contractors
- governance roles
- research project participants (where relevant)
Aggregated data will be reviewed annually from the first hire and included in the annual governance review.
5. Training & Capacity Building
Autoware Foundation UK will ensure:
- Mandatory equality, diversity, and unconscious bias training for the Director
- Training for any future staff or contractors within 12 months of joining
- Training will be undertaken using free or low-cost online resources (e.g., EU GE Academy, UK Equality resources, LinkedIn Learning, or equivalent).
6. Actions by Thematic Area
6.1 Work–Life Balance & Culture
- Maintain flexible and remote-friendly working practices where compatible with the role.
- Where roles require physical access to vehicles, hardware, or test facilities, on-site work will be required due to operational necessity and safety requirements.
- Flexible or remote work will be supported for other tasks where feasible.
- Promote an inclusive and respectful organisational culture for all genders.
6.2 Gender Balance in Leadership & Decision-Making
- Aim to increase representation of underrepresented genders in governance.
- Target: Seek to appoint at least one governance participant (board or committee) from an underrepresented gender by 2027, where candidates are equally qualified, in accordance with the Equality Act 2010 positive action provisions.
- Review governance composition annually.
6.3 Gender Equality in Recruitment & Career Progression
- Use gender-neutral and inclusive language in job and contractor advertisements.
- Ensure open, transparent selection criteria.
- Ensure diverse outreach when recruiting.
- Apply tie-break provisions (s.159 Equality Act 2010) only when candidates are equally qualified.
6.4 Gender Dimension in Research & Innovation Content
Consider gender relevance in research proposals and projects, particularly in areas such as:
- human-machine interaction (HMI)
- safety validation
- user studies and pilot deployments
Document the gender dimension in proposals where applicable.
6.5 Measures Against Gender-Based Violence & Harassment
Zero-tolerance policy for discrimination, harassment, and gender-based violence.
Clear reporting routes for any incidents.
Ensure confidentiality, support, and protection for complainants.
7. Review and Update
This GEP will be:
- Reviewed annually each October
- Updated as the organisation grows or if legal requirements change
- Reported by the Director and to any future governing body
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